Domaine des Comtes Lafon, Chardonnay, Meursault-Porusots 1er Cru, Burgundy, France 2018

Lafon’s ‘Porusots’ is rich, round, and loaded with weighty flavors of stone fruit, lemon curd, white flowers, pear skin, and vanilla. The wine’s vibrant and full-bodied palate remains balanced by tons of natural acidity. Serve with roasted poultry, broiled lobster tails, or a variety of washed-rind cheeses.

The 1er Cru Porusots is an east-facing vineyard with deep clay soils. The site produces lavish, layered and deeply structured wines.

Comte Lafon whites, in particular, are powerful and long-lived (though the reds should not be underestimated). The white grapes are sorted in the vineyard and in the winery, then whole-cluster pressed. After settling overnight, the juice is racked to barrels for fermentation and aging. Village wines see no new oak, Premier Crus see 20-50% new, and the Montrachet goes into 100% new oak. Bâtonnage is practiced much less frequently than in the past, and decisions are made on a barrel-by-barrel basis. After malolactic fermentation, the wines are racked and blended, then moved to cooler cellars for the final year of aging—total aging time in wood is 18-22 months. The whites are fined if needed but bottled unfiltered.